Pinter’s Keepers: Central Coast Breweries

July 12, 2018

The Central Coast isn’t just for wine lovers anymore! With dozens of on-site breweries lining the Central Coast, you can pique your palate in various locations and ways. Many of these breweries also feature outdoor games for sunny days, pub food options, and more—hop along with us!

Stay SLOCal

Central Coast Brewing – check out their new brewery on South Higuera, or stick to the original downtown location. Either way, you’ll be graced with the presence of upfront bitterness in the Lucky Day IPA. If the lingering hops are a little too much, their award-winning Brewmaster, Brendan Gough, released three new styles within the past month – Tripel Dare, a Beligan Style Tripel, and Doppelbock, German style malt, and the most recent being Hopkick Murphy, a New England Style IPA. Compliment your favorite beer with ultimate crispy tater tots – 10/10 recommend adding bacon-, a well-seasoned chicken sandwich, or deliciously glazed salmon salad. Their current draft list consists of 15 unique beers, which you can taste on a flight, in a can, in a growler, or on tap. Central Coast Brewery is active in the community hosting live music, upcoming Oktoberfest, and unique events such as the recent Hot August Bike Show.

“Ya, we know it’s sour”

Stop by Libertine Brewing Company for the most specialized (a.k.a. gnarliest) beer in the County. Their wildly titled beers match the uniqueness of taste – two team favorites including, but not limited to: Rose Tint My World and Single Fin IPA. They fish around for some wild ales, most notably, their Rod and Reel, which encompasses 60 pounds of Swedish Fish. Yes, you read that right. Libertine’s extensive draft list could have us rambling for hours, but we suggest you grab a flight and explore for yourself. Get on another level with Sunday night bingo, Taco Tuesdays, Craft Women Wednesday, and BOGA (Beer + Yoga!), right in downtown SLO.

Tropic Like It’s Hot

Tap It Brewing – Tucked in between various businesses, this brewery offers a variety of beers and live music. Recently, Tap It and Santa Maria Brewing Company merged to deliver a higher capacity of great quality beer. With their Flagship collection, you can indulge various ales – an oatmeal stout, and a tropical IPA to name a few. Tap It also offers a Creative beer line, intertwining their flagship series with flavors and aromas to produce a wheat, a sour IPA, an imperial red, and more! Their large back patio allows for various food truck savory delights, event space, and redesigned vintage vehicles. We would say it’s pretty pawfect for your furry friends to hang around indoors and outdoors.

Secret Barrels

Enter the Prohibition era in downtown SLO at Barrelhouse Brewery. Their year-round selection will be sure to indulge beer connoisseurs. Famously known for their Sunny Daze Blonde and Mango IPA, challenge your friends and family to Shuffle Board, Cards Against Humanity, or any other game out of their large collection. Interested in Beer and Wellness? Barrelhouse’s team of researchers compiled the Numerous Health Benefits of craft beer for your convenience. For six distinct series of beers, live music and extensive rows of cornhole, visit their brewery in Paso Robles.

Lion & Bear

It’s no secret that the Central Coast houses the world-class production brewery, Firestone Walker. Most widely known for their California crafted, 805, Firestone also currently offers varieties ranging from double IPAs and barrel aged ales to white peach saisons and nitro milk stouts. Situated right off the 101, the facility includes a taproom restaurant, a brewery emporium, and a visitor’s center. With brew house tours running seven days a week and a barrel room tour running Friday thru Sunday, there really isn’t a bad time to stop in and see what the buzz is about!

Hoppy Poppy:

Another widely known brewery, originating on the southern edge of the Central Coast is Figueroa Mountain Brewing. Their beer is known for being a part of putting the Central Coast on the map for craft beer. You may have tried their “101” – an amber colored blonde ale with a crisp, fruit aroma, or their Lizard’s Mouth IIPA – a whopping 9.2% with a tropical taste. With October right around the corner, Figueroa released a brand new German-style Weizenbock with notes of honey, banana, clove, ad cracker. We recommend trying their food as well– their eclectic menu is sure to have something for everyone.

As always, we recommend designating a driver when you go out to indulge. More specifically, don’t make one of your friends do it, and contact us today—we specialize in all tasting tours, and have private cars ranging from sedans to limousines to buses. Shoot us an email at SLOSafeRide@gmail.com, or give us a call at (805) 620-SAFE!

SLO Safe Ride is a ground transportation operator servicing San Luis Obispo, Paso Robles, and the entire Central Coast. We specialize in weddings, wine tours, nightlife, and luxury charters. Our outstanding customer service emphasizes professionalism, punctuality, and attention to detail. We pride ourselves on creating unique experiences for any occasion, and are always willing to go the extra mile. Most importantly, we offer a responsible choice 24/7 for anyone looking to enjoy their life in comfort and style!